


No time to travel

by orphan_account



Category: Gravity Falls
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Family Feels, Family Fluff, Fluff, Gen, Homelessness, Illegal Activities, Protective Grunkle Stan, Single Parents, Time Travel
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-09-24
Updated: 2015-09-27
Packaged: 2018-04-23 04:36:47
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,136
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4863398
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In which homeless drifter Stan Pines accidentally adopts his own great niece from the future. Really, there was a perfectly logical explanation and none of it happened on purpose.</p><p>Things would have been made a lot easier if Mabel could have at least stayed in the present long enough to see what the portal was for and who came through it. But sometimes things just didn't work out the way you'd want them to.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. 1

**Author's Note:**

> inspired by the couple of fics I've already seen of this topic. I hope to go pretty far with this, but my track record of finishing fics isn't too great. Mabel isn't too much herself here, but you can't really blame her for that.

Mabel was scared. It was only minutes ago that she was in the secret lab underneath the mystery shack, Grunkle Stan begging them not to shut the portal down. Only minutes ago since Dipper took out the time machine Blendin had given them after the whole Globnar thing. 

The time machine was sputtering and crackling on the floor of a very unfamiliar warehouse. And the eyes of her grunkle-maybe-not-grunkle, desperate for her to trust him, were replaced by a different set of eyes, belonging to an eerily familiar face. These eyes seemed almost as desperate, but also a whole lot more surprised.

“D-did you just... pop outta thin air?” The man spoke gruffly, but made no attempt to stifle his shock. Something about the way he sounded was also familiar. But Mabel had more important things on her mind than whoever she appeared before- she wasn't even sure if this were the past or present. So she plucked the machine up and pulled the tape.

The time machine sparked a few more times before going dark completely. There was no flash of light, and Mabel was still there, in the cold warehouse. “No,no,no...” Mabel muttered. Don't break now, not while I'm alone at who knows when!

“Hey, uh, kid.. I'm not going to hurt you, but you really shouldn't be here.” The man, with dirty, worn clothes and long unkempt hair, stepped towards her. And Mabel was usually the most trusting person on the planet. But not today, not when she'd just been crying about her maybe-grunkle Stan and with the world about to be maybe-destroyed. She took a step back, the man was carrying a bag of something- was he a thief? 

The doors to the warehouse slammed open. “Birch! I saw that flash of light, you better not be up to anything funny!” These new men were even more threatening, probably because of the weapons and the fact that they clearly belonged to some gang. 

“Hey, hey, I swear I did nothing!” The first man held his hands up. “ Your package is right here!” He held the bag up. Mabel realized she was extremely out of her depth. 

The man at the front of the newcomers flicked his eyes to the bag, and then over and straight to Mabel. “What is this- you were told to come alone! What's your plan, Birch?” Mabel's heart skipped three beats from the gun in his hands suddenly being pointed at her. The already terrifying situation became paralyzingly so. Mabel gripped the time machine harder.

“P-plan, I got no plan! She's what caused that light! Appeared right from nowhere, I tell ya!” The lone man held his hands higher. “I swear, I just came to fill my end of the deal. No tricks.”

The other man snorted, readjusting the position of his gun. “I've been warned about you, Birch. Most slippery nobody north of the border, with more names than there are states. Pretty impressive for a one-man operation.” He turned to one of his men. “Grab the girl, just in case.” Mabel couldn't move, she was so scared of the gun and the men and the entire situation. She tried to scream or do something, but one of the men- clearly some kind of underling- pulled her roughly by the hair. Mabel let out a tiny squeak of pain,stumbling forward.

The lone man tensed, and Mabel suddenly realized that he hadn't been lying earlier. He at least didn't want her hurt, and she really should not be here. The lone man's eyes didn't leave Mabel or the thug holding her. Eventually he let out a strained chuckle. “Well, I can't be a nobody if you've heard of me, can I?”

The gun pointed toward him. “They warned me you were a smart mouth too.” And then he huffed. “Of course, I'm not sure what you could possibly be thinking, with a kid for backup. Not your smartest move.”

“Exactly! It wasn't my move at all! Honest, I have no idea where she came from. This is your territory, so if anything, the security is your fault!” The lone man gulped as his words just made the other man point his gun harder. 

“Don't get smart with me, Birch. I'll deal with the kid after. Now hand the package over.”

The lone man paused. “You throw me my money first.”

“That's real cute, Birch.”

The lone man sighed, almost dramatically. “You can't blame a man for trying. Fine, here you go.” He heaved the bag over his head, and the man with the gun caught it from the air. 

He laughed, “And they said you never saw a deal through before. I guess you just needed the right motivation, yeah?”

“What can I say?” The lone man laughed. “Can't argue with a gun. Now, my money?” 

“Ohh, I don't know Birch. Maybe you should feel the sting of being cheated for once. It's what you get for working alone.”

The lone man sighed again. “I thought you would say that.” And then he jerked his arm in a throwing motion. With a loud bang, the world around Mabel blew suddenly into thick, burning smoke. Finally, Mabel was able to scream as her eyes and throat seemed to be scalded, joining with the sudden screaming and coughing of the other men. 

Mabel stumbled back when the hold on her hair released, coughing and choking. All too suddenly she felt herself scooped up by one arm and hauled away. Panicking, Mabel twisted and flailed even though she couldn't see or hear anything. She tried to scream again but a hand clamped across her mouth. The grip on her was strong, unrelenting. Mabel tried to rip herself out of it anyways. She was bumped and jostled as her kidnapper ran. Why was he running away from the group, wasn't he part of that gang?

“Stop struggling, I'm getting you out of here!” A gruff voice right by Mabel's ear. This was the lone man who threw those bombs. Mabel was frightened and didn't trust anybody there, but she could already tell he was a much better option than that gang. Mabel went limp and tried to be quieter, but she couldn't stop coughing or crying. 

“Sorry about that,” He spoke quietly. “Knew they weren't gonna pull through, the bastards. They got my car though, and that's the one thing I ain't leavin' behind.” A hand thumped her back to get the last of the smoke out. “You alright.”

“F-ff-” Mabel hacked out some phlegm. “Fine. Kinda” Her voice was croaky, and her throat and nose still burned. The man settled into a jog. Mabel desperately wanted to peek behind to see if they were being chased, but she still couldn't see a thing through the searing pain and tears in her eyes. 

“Sorry, shouldn't be trying to make ya speak. Those smoke bombs have a lil' extra in 'em. There should be somethin' for that still in the car, once I get to it. You can hold on 'till then, yeah?” 

Mabel wanted to ask why he was helping her, or where he was taking her. But she decided to follow his advice. Speaking had hurt. Mabel didn't think opening her eyes would work out too well either. Thankfully, the man seemed to realize what she was thinking. “Don't you worry, I left those idiots in the dust. I'm a fast runner, and I'm heading to their hideout. They'll be expecting me to go back to mine if I go anywhere at all.”

The man heaved to pull her in a more comfortable position, still moving quite fast for someone carrying a twelve year old. “You see, they know I won't be goin' nowhere without my car. That's why they thought I'd pull through.” The man boasted, eager to explain his plan. “It's true if I had it back, I'd be at least three states over. What they don't know, is I pulled this to get them away from their hideout. They wouldn't leave until their lookout confirmed I was there. And now they'll go on a wild goose chase through the woods and around town lookin' for me. Cause they won't expect someone like me to strike right away.” 

The man huffed, both in exasperation and exhaustion. “People always underestimate the lone rangers. Speaking of, you good to walk kiddo? Just nod or somethin'.” Mabel hesitated, then nodded. With a thankful sigh, he slid her to the ground. “Just hold my hand, yeah? I promise I'm not kidnapping you, but we really do need to get away. Carl and his idiots will not be nice if they find you.” 

Mabel shivered and gripped the hand around hers more tightly. With her other hand, she reaffirmed her grip on the time machine, slipped in her sweater pocket sometime before the thug grabbed her. The man had slowed a bit more, making it possible for Mabel's short legs to keep up if she moved quickly. Still, after all of that, and the whole portal thing back in her time, every step felt difficult. With the steady rhythm though, Mabel managed to keep going. 

 

“Alright kiddo, we're nearly there.” How long had they been walking? It felt forever, and even longer since the man had been carrying her. “Carl's a smaller operation than he likes to pretend. Hideout isn't more'n five minute drive from his dropoff point.” Mabel tried to clear her eyes now that her tears had dried, but she gasped as the burn intensified again. “Just hold on, kiddo.” There was a tone of guilt in the man's voice. 

Mabel felt the branches and leaves of a thick bush pull at her legs and arms. “There we are. All alone, and right in the garage. Still, best we be quiet. Can you crouch down for me, kiddo?” His hand gently tugged her down as both of them crouched. “Good, good. Now just, follow my lead, quietly.”

They half crawled, half shuffled their way through the bushes and across rough pavement. Mabel winced at the feeling of her knees against the pavement, but tried not to make a sound. The man had said they were alone, but if he were certain of that, they wouldn't be sneaking like this. So Mabel bit her lip and kept following. After what seemed like far too long, the man stopped. “Just gotta break through this door and open the garage, then we're home free.” He explained himself, and Mabel found herself nodding.

Mabel knew she wasn't usually one for following quietly like this. But she was so tired, and scared, and tired of being scared. Not to mention hurt and lost. This man was helping her, so Mabel just gripped more tightly at the sound of a lock being picked, and a door being opened. “There we go, home sweet home.” Mabel was tugged along. The man let out a very relieved breath. “I- I knew they wouldn't do nothing to her, not when they can use her for themselves.” He reassured, though Mabel thought it might be for his sake as much as hers. “I have my spare key right here, so we might as well get out of here.” 

Mabel heard a car door open and slipped in without prompting. The garage doors started moving with a loud groaning sound. Mabel cringed at the volume. If anyone was nearby, they would definitely notice them now. But then, the other door opened and the man immediately bustled in, starting the car. Mabel instinctively pulled her seat belt on, even though she still couldn't open her eyes. The man chuckled at that, but a distinctive click followed that meant he was now wearing one too. The car started with a grumble, the man wasting no time in revving it into action. 

Mabel gasped as the car peeled out of wherever it was, taking a turn much too fast for comfort. The man laughed. “And we're home free! Woo!” Then he coughed. “Well, maybe save the celebration 'till we're out of town. But it should be smooth sailing from here, Carl ain't got the resource to chase me too far. That's if he's even chasing me at all, and not still curled up at the dropoff. And speaking of,” His clothes rustled as an arm reached in front of her and popped something open- the glove compartment probably.

“If you reach in there you should find a smallish bottle with liquid, it's got a long cap. Drop some in your eyes, it should clear things up in a bit. There should be a bottle of water there too.” Mabel dug around blindly until she pulled out what felt to be the items. “Yeah, there you go. Small one for your eyes, and drink as much as ya' want.”

Mabel carefully unscrewed the small bottle. Never one for squeamishness, she managed to get some across her eyelids, and carefully peeled them open enough to make sure it got inside too. They hurt going in, but soon spread into a much needed coolness. She wasted no time getting to the water bottle either, immediately draining half of the contents.

“Tha-” Mabel hacked. “Thanks.”

“Ahh, don't mention it, kid. I'm sorry you got wrapped up in that business. Where'd you even come from, anyways.”

Mabel wasn't sure what to answer. “Um,” she tried, coughing again, then taking another gulp of water. “I don't know, uhhh,” 

“You, you know what, don't worry about it.” Mabel turned to the man in surprise. “So long as you're not from that town, right? I mean, if you are, I can probably drop you off real quick before I get going, but otherwise you should probably at least skip this town with me just in case. Once the heats off, I can take ya wherever your home is.”

Mabel's eyes brimmed with tears again. She gripped the time machine. This guy couldn't possibly hope to take her home. He could bring her to the location, sure, but that wouldn't mean anything, since this could be any time at all. She briefly considered having him drop her off, but discarded the thought. Time machines were only meant to move through time, not space. But there were no warehouses in Gravity Falls, not like that one. Certainly there had never been one in the place of the mystery shack. And if Mabel was in some future where a warehouse was built in place of the shack, then Grunkle Stan probably wasn't around anymore. 

Also, Mabel really didn't want to be caught by that Carl person. So she simply shook her head, finally resting it against the seat. Mabel fell asleep faster than she ever had before.


	2. 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A conversation clears some things up.

When Mabel woke up, she didn't understand why her eyes were sore. She didn't know why there seemed to be a seatbelt across her chest or why she was in a sitting position. Then Mabel stretched, yawned, and cringed as everything came together.

Mabel turned her head to the man who had gotten her away from those people. He was snoring, body curled awkwardly across the driver seat and his head against the wheel. They were pulled over at a truck stop somewhere. Mabel didn't recognize it, but then again they hadn't stopped at many places on the way up to Gravity Falls. 

Mabel wondered again, as she reached for the mostly empty water bottle. How far in the future was she? Mabel knew she wasn't as good at thinking as her twin, but she also knew that something was off. Quite a bit of time had to pass in order to build a warehouse over the Mystery Shack. But where was the cool future technology? Looking around her, Mabel realized this car was practically the same as Grunkle Stan's, even if it ran a bit better but looked a bit messier.

She paused. Since when did a town like Gravity Falls develop a gang? A normal gang that is, and not the blind eye cult. Did it turn into a city in the future? Mabel unfastened her seat belt in order to look around better. The back seat had a lot of clutter in it, and nothing futuristic. There were several blankets, some empty bags, and a full bag, the one from last night.

Mabel gasped. How did that get there? She saw her rescuer throw it to them! Suddenly, the car let out a loud honk and Mabel yelped. The man startled up with a shout and then a grumble. “I gotta stop using the wheel as a pillow,” he griped. And then turned to Mabel.

“Oh shi- uh, I mean, I almost forgot you were here.” He stumbled for words. “You feelin' better, kiddo?” 

He seemed genuinely concerned, so Mabel dredged up a smile. She was still lost in time and had no idea what to do, but at least she'd gotten away. There were things to be happy about. “Yep! My eyes are a little sore still.” 

The man looked away. “Right. You can take more eye drops if you want. Should stop hurting soon, s'not meant to do any real damage.” 

The man awkwardly paused for a long while. Mabel considered what to say as she picked up the eyedropper again. And then she decided to just go for it. “Thanks for helping me. What's your name?”

This startled the man into a laugh. “No problem, I guess. Can hardly call it helping when I gave ya a face full of my smoke bomb.” Then he bit his lip. “Hmm. My name is... Lee Strobus.” 

Besides being a bizarre name, the clear fact that he was taking time to think tipped Mabel off. “I thought those guys were calling you 'Birch?” Mabel channeled her inner suspicious Dipper as best she could. 

The man- Lee?- chuckled. “Yeah, they sure were. Which is why I gotta use a new name now.”

“So... your real name is Birch?” 

“Nah, of course not.” Lee grinned. “It's the rule of thumb for con men like me. Or anyone who needs to dodge someone. Never use your real name.”

Mabel frowned. “Well, my name's Mabel.” 

Lee laughed. “Fair 'nuff, not like Carl had your name in the first place, and not like you're runnin' from the law.” He furrowed his eyebrows. “You're not, are you? Still dunno how you got there.”

“No, I'm not running from the law, I think.” Mabel considered it. She was meant to be heading to child services in the present with Dipper. So technically, Mabel supposed the government was in fact chasing her even if they weren't in this time. And maybe the time police? Mabel wondered if the time police would just drop her back home if they found her- it wasn't like Mabel had used the machine on purpose. 

“Wait, wait, what do you mean, 'I think'? It's the kind of thing you either are or aren't.”

The time machine was still safely stowed in Mabel's pocket. She took it out gingerly. Lee might not be this guy's real name, but he was definitely a good guy. And plus, it wasn't as if Mabel really cared about messing with time in the first place. Maybe talking about it would bring the time police to her. “Well,” Mabel started, lifting the machine up. “Me and my brother were being chased by government guys, but that was in 2012. I'm a time traveler.”

Lee raised his eyebrows. “Really?”

“Yeah!” Mabel cheered slightly at his confusion. “It was an accident. We aren't even really supposed to have a time machine, but this time police guy we got into trouble, and then beat in Globnar, and then he liked us, gave this. My brother Dipper had it with him when we..” Mabel wasn't sure how to explain the events of the portal. So she skipped over it. “It got knocked out of his hands and hit me, and accidentally turned on.” And there went Mabel's mood again. It ran her into some random time, and now she was who knows where because a gang had taken over Gravity Falls. 

“Okay, okay, I don't understand any of that. I can take your word for it, I guess.” Lee scratched his head. “Not too many logical explanations for you flashing in out of nowhere.” He glanced at Mabel again, his eyebrows creasing. “You know, why don't we get some grub first? Then you can tell me all about your time traveling.”

Mabel perked up. “Yeah, I'm starrrving! Let's get eggs and bacon!”

Lee chuckled. “Alright, eggs and bacon it is. This stop's diner should have something like that.” He stretched out, popping his back before opening the car door. Mabel followed suit, excited for food now that she realized how hungry she was.

As it turned out, the diner did have eggs and bacon. Mabel dug in greedily. “So, you're from the future, huh? What's it like 30 years from now?”

Mabel paused. “Future- wait, what?” 30 years from now? “What year is it?” 

Lee frowned and answered. Mabel gaped. 1981? That was more than 30 years ago! “I.. thought I was in the future..” 

Lee laughed. “What? I guess not much's changed then.”

Mabel shrugged. “So far.” She wondered how she had gotten convinced this was the future. Wait, “How was there a warehouse? There aren't any warehouses in Gravity Falls!” Mabel knew she was missing something here. Dipper was so much better at logic!

“Gravity Falls? What are you talkin' about, kiddo? That was Hamilton we just got out of.”

Mabel froze. “Err, what state?”

“Ohio.” 

Suddenly the eggs didn't seem as delicious anymore. Mabel slumped, wanting to cry. “That's halfway across the country! I'm lost in time and space!”

Lee leaned over awkwardly to pat Mabel's shoulder. “Uhh, sorry to hear that. Can't you just travel back to the future and call your time travel buddies?”

Mabel sniffled. “It broke when I came here. And this is the only time machine we have, since we aren't supposed to have one at all.” Mabel shoved more food in her mouth in an attempt to feel less panicked. 

“I.. that's terrible. I guess you don't know where you want me to drop you off?” Lee looked away nervously. 

Mabel swallowed the last bit of her bacon. “I don't know what to do. I wish my bro Dipper were here, he always has a plan. Or my grunkle Stan.” Just saying their names gave Mabel a pang of longing. She missed them already. 

Lee started shifting awkwardly, trying to work up what to say. “I don't suppose a good mechanic might be able to fix it?”

Mabel held up the machine. “It's from the future- a lot farther than where I'm from. None of us really know how it works.” 

“I guess you'd have to be a genius to even hope to fix it..” Lee sounded wistful even as he frowned. 

“Right,” Mabel agreed. She finished the toast and eggs, clearing every hint of food from her plate. Mabel wondered if she'd even survive on her own. Lee had been nice, and Mabel liked to believe in the niceness of others. Could she find another person as nice as Lee?

Mabel didn't want to do that. She'd much rather stay with Lee. An idea began to form. 

“You know wh-”

“Lee, can I-”

They both paused. “Listen,” Lee began again. “If you really have nowhere to go... you can stick with me.” Mabel's eyes sparkled at the offer, causing Lee to hold his hands up self consciously. “I can tell ya right now, I don't exactly got the best digs. I live outta my car and I can barely feed myself. But if you're from the future, you can't just go to child services or stay in a homeless shelter somewhere.”

Mabel grinned, and when she couldn't contain herself anymore, she launched across the table, grabbing Lee in a bear hug. “Thank you, thank you, thank you! I'm gonna be the best travel buddy ever! Until I can get the time machine fixed.”

Lee didn't move for five solid seconds. And then suddenly he relaxed. “Yeah, well, what kinda person would I be if I just dropped you off in the streets.” He patted her head. “And I was thinkin', I may not be smart enough to fix your machine, but I can make some pit stops at colleges along our way. Maybe we can find you a mechanical genius.” 

Mabel's smile was blinding. “That sounds like a great plan! Where should we go, first?” 

Lee coughed. “Well, I'm not kicked out of Ohio just yet, so...” 

As Lee constructed the travel plans, Mabel felt for the first time that her situation might not be so hopeless.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yeah, stan didn't mention ford. I feel like I should justify this- one, Stan doesn't really know if Ford even is enough of a genius to fix a time machine. Stan knows Ford is super smart, but I don't think he has much information beyond that he did well enough to get a bunch of grant money. And Ford choosing to investigate something as vague as "anomalies" doesn't really seem to align with time machines anyways. And of course, the second reason is just that Stan would not want to contact Ford, and only would if there were no other option and he knew Ford was capable. Which he doesn't. 
> 
> also, Mabel is not hiding her last name on purpose. From personal experience, at 12 years old most kids aren't used to introducing themselves with their last name. They might at the start of a school year, but it's not something you think of or consider relevant unless prompted. And Stan/Lee didn't prompt her.


End file.
